Cooling system for hydraulically operated machine tools



Mairch 9 w. G. BALDENHOFER 2, 47

COOLING SYSTEM FOR HYDRAULICALLY-OPERATED MACHINE TOOLS Filed Feb. 18, 1942 2 heets-Sheet l INVENTOQ WLLIAM G. BALDE HOFEQ BY Jaaww & JYu rnn/ ATTORNEYS March 5, 1946. w. G. BALDENHOFER 2,396,147

COOLING SYSTEM FOR HYDRAULICALLY-OPERATED MACHINE TOOLS Filed Feb. 18, 1942 2 S eets-Sheet 2 WILLIAM G BALDEN'IOFETQ BY -7ouimru&\yow rnn mmQEV-S Patented Mar. 5, 1946 OFFICE COOLING SYSTEM FQR HYDRAULICALLY OPERATED MACHINE TOOLS William G. Baldenhoier,

or to The Thompson G field, Ohio, .a corpora Springfield, Ohio, assignrlnder Company, Springtion of Ohio Application February 18, 1942, Serial No. 431,454

Claims.

The present invention relates to metal-working machines, particularly those of a heavy type and employing reclprocatory carriages or other heavy moving parts. The invention is concerned more especially with those machines which employ forced lubrication and which are designed for precision work.

In certain types of machines, such-as grinders which utilize a heavy reciprocable table, the problem of lubrication is an important item. Oil under pressure is usually employed for this purpose, the fiow of the oil being controlled by shut off and throttle valves. It has been found that in valves of this character, particularly when they are in an almost completely closed condition, appreciable quantities of heat may be developed, and this heat is transferred to the bearing sur-- faces either by conduction or radiation. It therefore becomes necessary to cool the oil in order to maintain the bearing surfaces at a relatively constant temperature, and in accordance with the present invention a refrigerant is employed for this purpose.

The refrigerated oil, in contacting the bearing surfaces, cools only restricted portions of the machine, more particularly the bed and ways in the case of a grinder, but leaves the remainder of the machine, such as the vertical column, crossfeed mechanism, etc. at a temperature not greatly in excess of room temperature. Thus the difference between the temperature of the bed and its Ways, which is controlled by the temperature of the refrigerated oil, and the temperature of the remainder of the machine which is controlled to a great extent by the room temperature, remains substantially constant in case the room temperature does not appreciably vary. However, when the room temperature increases, for example during an excessively hot day, the temperature of a large portion of the machine increases in substantially the same amount, but the temperature of the cooled surfaces may remain at a constant value, depending on the efilcacy of the refrigerating system. It is apparent that under these circumstances there may exist a wide and variable difierential between the temperature of the cooled portions of the machine and the remaining portions thereof.

In the case of heavy-duty but high precision grinders, in which the bed and its ways are of considerable length, it is essential that'the temperatures of any of the contacting surfaces shall have the same difierential with respect to the room temperatures in order to prevent the introduction of warping and strains within the machine which tend to reduce the precision efiects. Another reason for maintaining a constant diflerential between the temperature of the ways and room temperature is that in the case of high precision metal-working machines the temperature of the work obviously conforms to the temperature of the room, and since the work is laid on the bed of the machine it is important that the temperature of the work and the temperature of the bed willnot appreciably change as a difierential notwithstanding abrupt and marked changes in the room temperature.

The primary object of the invention is to provide an improved oil-lubricating system which is especially adapted to machines having a reciprocable work table and in which it becomes necessary, from the standpoint of precision work, to make a substantially constant temperature diiferential between the parts which reciprocate with respect to one another and the remaining parts of the machine.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved lubricating system for machines engaged in precision work, and in which the lubricant and the parts immediately affected thereby are maintained at a relatively constant temperature or at least are maintained at a temperature showing a constant differential with respect to the temperature of the room.

A more general object is to provide an improved lubricating system which is adapted to any type of high precision metal-working or metal-treating machine, the temperature of the oil in the system being so controlled that predetermined temperatures are maintained at the surfaces between stationary and moving parts, in order to prevent warping or strain which might otherwise deleteriously aifect the precision of working or treatment provided by the machine.

These and other advantages will be apparent after reading the following specification in connection with the drawings.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 shows in diagram a typical machine to which the invention may be applied, specifically a grinder, operating in connection with a typical lubricant-cooling apparatus illustrated as a compressor, condenser and expansion coil unit.

Figure 2 shows a hydraulic circuit, including control valves and employed for actuating the mechanism of an exemplary machine;

Figure 3 is a schematic plan view of the oil'- cooling system, including a temperature-determining eleotrical switch which responds to a temperature differential.

numeral designates the bed of a grinder, the

table of which is indicated at 2. This =bed takes the form of a heavy elongated casting of hollow rectangular shape and having a flanged bottom indicated at 3 (Figure 5) and terminating .at the top in a V-shaped way 4 and a rectangular way or guide 5. The top portion of the bed is preferably provided with a longitudinally extending slot 6, and the sides of the bed are reenf orced by a plurality of equi-distantiy spaced webs I which extend downwardly from the under side of the top or table portion to a distance approximately half the depth of the bed. The latter therefore comprises a heavy box-like structure completely closed on all sides except for the opening 6, and having the webs 1 extending across to the opposite sides of the box throughout substantially its entire length.

On'top of the table 2 there is mounted, in any suitable and well known manner, a carriage (not shown) which is adapted to be moved lengthwise of the table when actuated in any suitable manner, for example, a piston 8 contained in a cylinder 9 and actuated by fluid pressure, as will be explained in'connection with Figure 2. Rising upwardly from the table 2 and to one side thereof so as to clear the moving carriage, there is a vertical column l which has an arcuate configuration at the rear, as indicated at ll, and is provided at the front edge with a dovetail slide indicated at l2, which is adapted to receive a saddle I3. The latter is provided with a dovetail groove which fits over the slide I2 and to which it is suitably gibbed, as is well known in the art. The saddle l3 extends downwardly and outwardly from its dovetail groove and is provided at its outer end with a pair of oppositely directed heavy flange portions M, of circular configuration and having a depth suflicient to receive a dovetail groove l5 which extends transversely of the machine. This groove is adapted to receive a carrier i6 provided with a suitable dovetail slide. This carrier provides the support for a grinding or other type of abrasive wheel l1, suitably journalled in the carrier and having a guard element l8 on both side thereof. The carrier i6 is adapted to move transversely of the table 2, and in the typical machine illustrated is actuated by a crossfeed piston l9 contained in a cylinder (Figure 2). If desired the carrier may be manually moved transversely of the machine by means of a hand wheel 2|.

The front of the bed I is provided with a wheel 22, which may be used to elevate the saddle it with respect to the column ll, thus to control the height of the wheel I! with respect to the table 2. The bed may also-be provided with a lever plate 23 having a lever 24 which controls the speed of the crossfeed piston l9. A lever 25 may also be positioned on the plate 23-to control the speed of the carriage-operating mechanism, as will be explained more fully in connection with Figure 2. It has been explained that the carrier 5 and the carriage (not shown) are preferably actuated hydraulically by means of the pistons i9 and 8, respectively. A typical hydraulic circuit for supplying pressure fluid to the cylinders 20, 9 is illustrated in Figure 2. The

entire lower portion of the bed I may be employed as a reservoir for a combined pressureoperating fluid and lubricant. This reservoir is indicated in Figure 2 by the numeral 26, and the fluid is designated 21.

In order to provide pressure to the actuating fluid a pump 28 is employed, the pump being driven preferably by an electric motor indicated at 29 in Figure l. The motor maybe supported on a triangularly shaped member 30 extending to the rear otrthe bed. A conduit 3| is taken from the reservoir 26 to the pump 28, then extending from the pressure side of the pump through a throttling control valve 32 provided with an exhaust connection, indicated at 33. From the valve 32 a conduit 34 is taken to a suitable valve (not shown) positioned at the rear of the plate 23 and through which pressure fluid may be carried to conduits 35 and 36 when the levers 24 and 25 are operated. The latter may be of the throttling type so as to admit full passage to the pressure fluid passing between the conduits 34 and 35 or between the conduits 34 and 36, and in addition the levers may serve to control the rate of fluid flow into the conduits 35, 36. The conduit 35 passes into a reversing valve 3'! which may be automatically or handoperated through a rod 38. There is a pair of conduits 39, 40 extending from opposite ends of the cylinder 20 to the reversing valve 31; The reversing valve 31 is connected through a conduit 4| to the reservoir 26. The reversing valve 31 may be of any suitable and well known type, by which, when the rod 38 is operated in the proper direction, pressure fluid in the pipe 35 may be supplied, for example, to the conduit 40, leaving the other conduit 39 to form an exhaust through the conduit 4| to the reservoir.

From the conduit 4| there is taken a pipe 42 which passes into a reversing valve 43 of a type similar to the reversing valve 31. A conduit 44 is connected from the other side of the reversing valve 43 to one end of the cylinder 9. A pipe 45 is taken from the opposite end of the cylinder 9 to the reversing valve 43, this pipe being adapted to connect with the conduit 36 when the reversing valve 43 has been operated in the proper direction. A pipe 46 is taken from the reservoir 26 to the multi-control valve member at the rear of the plate 23. A pipe 41 is connected at one end through a throttle valve 48 to a coupling 49 in the conduit 4|, and at its opposite end the pipe 41 is provided with a plurality of branches 58 whichopen into the botto mof the V-shaped and rectangularly shaped ways, 4, 5.

Assume that the pump 28 is being actuated by the motor 29 and that the valve 32 is turned to such a position that pressure fluid is passed into the conduit 34 but is prevented from reaching the exhaust conduit 33. Now assume that the lever 25 has been moved into such a position that the pressure fluid in the pipe 34 passes through the immediately associated valve and is received by the pipe 36, and after passing through the reversing valve 43 flows through the pipe 45 into the right-hand end of the cylinder 9. The piston 8 will be caused to move to the left and thus to operate the carriage in the desired work-engaging direction. The exhaust from the cylinder 9 is passed through the pipe 44, through the reversing valve 43, the pipe 42 and through the lower end of the pipe 4| to the reservoir. Thus no back pressure would be developed behind the piston 8. A portion of the fluid which passes through the lower end of the conduit 4| would flow through the valve 49, into the pipe 31 and thence to the branches 59 to lubricate the ways 4, li.

When it is desired to operate the cross-teed piston It for moving the grinding wheel H in the transverse direction with respect to the table 2, the lever 24 is operated (with or without moving the lever 25, depending on the type of cut desired) so that pressure fluid is passed through the conduit 34 intothe conduit 35, through the reversing valve 31 and the conduit 40 to the right-hand end of the crossfeed cylinder 20. The exhaust from this cylinder is taken through the pipe 39, the reversing valve 31, the pipe 4|, through the coupling 49 into the reservoir, and a portion 01' this exhaust fluid is carried through the pipe 41 to the ways 4, 9. Thus the carrier I8 is caused automatically to move through a predetermined dising wheel II for its next longitudinal cut.

In order to reverse the carriage the levers 24 and 25, also the reversing valve 43 are so operated that pressure fluid is passed from the conduit 38 to the conduit 35, thence to the pipe 44 to the left hand end of the carriage-operating cylinder 9. The exhaust from the cylinder in this case takes place from the pipe 45, through the reversing valve 43, into the pipe 36 and thence through the pipe 36 to the reservoir. The return movement of the crossfeed piston i9 is effected from the conduit 34, through the valve at the rear of the plate 23, thence through the conduit 35, through the reversing valve 31 to the conduit 39 at the left-hand end of the crossfeed cylinder. The exhaust from this cylinder passes from the pipe 49, through the valve 31 and the conduit M to the reservoir, a portion of this pressure passing through the valve 68, the pipe M to the ways 4, 5. It will be noted that all of the fluid pressure, regardless of the direction in which the pistons 9 and i9 are being actuated, passes through the valve 32. In case it is desired to cut oil the pressure fluid from the high pressure line 35, the valve 32 would be operated, which would not only serve to close the pipe 34 but would also bypass the full output of the pump into the conduit 33 to the reservoir.

It is apparent that when the valve 32 has been operated to a throttling position, considerable heat is developed at this point, and this heat is communicated to the passing fluid. Other sources of heat can be found at the reversing valves 31, 63, also at the control valve which is secured to the plate 23 and at the valve 48. This heat is in addition to the heat which may be generated at the pistons B and i9, and the net result of these throttling and work-producing effects is that the temperature of the passing fluid may be considerably elevated. In case the pressure fluid is constituted of oil which additionally serves as a lubricant at the ways 5, 5, the heat may thin the oil and otherwise deleteriously affect its actuating properties at the cylinders 9 and 20 and perhaps its lubricating properties at the ways 4, 5.

In accordance with one of the features of my invention, there is provided an improved method and apparatus for maintaining the temperature of the oil subst ntially constant, regardless of the heating efl cts introduced at the various working parts, ncluding those of the valves throughout the system. As shown in Figures 3, 4

and 5, a serpentine pipe is provided within the bed I. at the bottom thereof, this pipe being adapted to receive brine Or any other suitable form of refrigerant such as the so-called "Freon. One end of the pipe 5| is connected through a conduit 52 to a reservoir 53 (Figure 1) containtancecrosswise of the worktoposition the grinding the surplus or the refrigerant. A conduit 54 is taken through a condensing coil 59, of any suitable and well known type, this coil being connected through a conduit 58 to one side of a compressor 51. The other side or the compressor is connected through a pipe 58 to the other end of' the pipe 5| opposite the end to which the pipe 92 is connected. A prime mover, preferably an electric motor 59. may be employed to operate the compressor through a suitable drive 89. The compressor and motor may, if desired, besupported on the casing which forms the reservoir 53. The general arrangement is such that the refrigerant which has become warm by contact with the heated oil passes through the pipe 59, into the compressor 51 and out through the pipe 58 to the condenser coil 56, thence through the pipe 54, into the reservoir 53 and finally through the pipe 52 to complete the circult through the serpentine conduit 5|.

In case it is desired to maintain a relatively constant temperature of the oil in the reservoir 26, a thermostat 6| may be placed within the bed I so as to respond to the temperature of the oil, this thermostat being preferably of the pneumatic type although, ii desired, a mechanical or electrical form of thermostat may be employed. A fine conduit 62 is connected between the thermostat GI and a bellows 63 (Figure 3). One end of the bellows is fixed by being secured to a rectangular casing 94, and the free end of the bellows, indicated at 65, is secured to a rod 66 carried at the end of the pivoted lever 61. This rod is supported on an upright 69 which is secured to the casing 64. The upright is provided with an opening which snugly receives an open ended cap member 69, and a compression spring Ill is positioned between the end 65 of the bellows and the bottom portion of the cap. Thus the spring 19 tends to maintain the bellows in its compressed condition. The lever 61 is pivoted at H, and at its upper end is provided with a contact 12. The latter is adapted to engage a fixed contact 13. The contact 12 is connected through a conductor M to one side of the electric mains 15. The fixed contact 13 is connected by a conductor 15 to the armature 11 of an overload release 19, the circuit being completed through a coil 19 which surrounds the core 89 of a pull-up switch. The latter is provided with a double armature, the upper element 8| of which serves to connect a conductor 82 to the conductor 14, and through a conductor 83 to the coil of the switch 18, thence through the electric motor 94 to the conductor 85 and the lower armature element 96 to the other side of the electric mains 81.

Assuming that the temperature of the oil has increased, the bellows '63 will have been caused to expand to the right so as to rotate the lever 81 counterclockwise about its pivot and to close the contacts i2, 13. This closure of the contacts completes a circuit from the electric main terminal I5, through conductor 14, conductor 16, through the armature 11 of the overload release switch, then through the coil 19 back to the other side 81 of the electric mains. The coil 19, being energized, will pull up its armature to complete a circuit from the terminal 15, through conductor 82, armature 8|, conductor 83, through the overload release switch 18 to the motor 84, through conductor 35 and armature 86 to the terminal 87. Thus the motor 84 will become energized to operate the compressor 51. The actuation of the motor will rotate the compressor and the oil exposed to the refrigerating pipe 5| will become cooled, as is well known in the art. When the temperature of the oil has been reduced to the predetermined value the bellows 83 will be permitted to collapse, due to the urge of the spring 18, causing the lever 61 to rotate clockwise and to open the motor circuit at the contacts l2, 13. Consequently, the temperature of the oil is maintained substantially constant by means of the cooling effects exercised by the refrigerant flowing through the expansion coll 5|.

While th system described immediately above operates satisfactorily in case the room temperature does not vary considerably, it has been found that when there are variations of this temperature the temperature of the oil, and the parts cooled thereby, remains substantially clue to the action of the refrigerant, but the temperature of the parts of the machine not cooled by the refrigerant will change in accordance with the change in room temperature. In the case of high precision metal-working machines, such as grinders, which must grind in some cases to a tolerance of fractions of a thousandth of an inch, it is necessary that the temperature of the cooled parts shall not vary from the room temperature by more than a predetermined and constant amount. In other words, the temperature differential must remain substantially the same notwithstanding abrupt and considerabl changes in room temperature. If the temperature differential exceeds the predetermined value not only are deleterious strains set up in the machine as a whole, but slight warping or dislocation in the positions of the various parts may be encountered, thereby introducing inaccuracies in the quality of the work. This is particularly true in the case of a grinder of long length, in which-the carriage moves over extensive ways and must do so with an exact alignment throughout its entire length of travel.

In accordance with another feature of my invention. there is provided a structure by which the pressure differential between the temperatures of the room and the cooled parts is maintained which is fixed to the side of the casing 64 opposite the bellows 63. The free end 9| of the bellows is connected through the rod 66 to the same end of the lever 61 as the free end 65 of the bellows 63.

. Assume that the room temperature has increased so that the thermostat 88 has caused the bellows 90 to expand toward the left. This operation will cause the rod 66 to tend to move to the left and thus to open the motor circuit at the contacts 12, 13. Consequently the rod 66, in moving to the left, exerts a pressure on the free end 65 of the bellows 63 and makes it that much harder for the bellows 63 to move the rod 66 to the right to close the contacts I2, 13. The net result of the differential movement of the bellows 90 and 63 is that the contacts 12, 13 will not be closed throughout as long a period as when the contacts were subjected solely to the action of the bellows 63. In other words, the period of time over which the compressor 51 is operated is reduced in accordance' with the increase in room temperature so tern has been made this increase can be controlled to correspond exactly with the increase in room temperature. Thus th temperature difierential between room temperature and the temperature of the machine parts cooled by the oil remains substantially constant.

In Figure 6 there is shown a modified structure. in which the expansion coil 8| for the refrigerant is of smaller size than the corresponding element shown in Figure 4. Directly to one side of the coil and also contained within the bed i there may be provided a motor 92 connected to a propeller 93, or other rotary fluid-circulating element. The purpose of the propeller is to cause the oil to move through paths roughly indicated by the arrows 94, these paths intercepting the expansion coil 9| so that all of the oil eventually is passed through the coil and thus becomes cooled by the contained refrigerant. The modified structure has the advantage over that shown in Figure 4 in that the expansion coil 9| may be of a much smaller size than the element 5|, and in addition may be readily procurable on the market instead of having to be especially designed and manufactured for the particular grinder bed. The motor 92 may be of any standard sealed-in type so that the combined motor and coil arrangement 9| constitutes an inexpensive structure. It will be understood that the modified coil shown in Figure 6 is intended to be used in the same manner as the coil 5| shown in the other figures, and is readily adaptable to the refrigerating system and electrical circuits shown in Figure 3.

It will be understoodthat I desire to comprehend within my invention such modifications as come within the scope of the claims and the invention.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. A metal working machine having a tool car riage, a bed which is provided with a plurality of ways over which said tool carriage reciprocates, means for moving said carriage, means including a source of lubricant for lubricating the ways of the machine, means including a lubricant cooling system for -maintaining a constant differential between the temperature of the room in which the machine is positioned and the temperature of said lubricant, said last-mentioned means in-' cluding a thermostat adapted to be placed within the lubricant, a bellows responsive to the movement of said thermostat, a thermostat responsive to changes in room temperature and a bel-, lows responsive to the movement of the room thermostat, an electric switch, and an interconnecting mechanism between the switch and said bellows whereby one bellows serves to close the switch and the other bellows serves to open the switch when the temperature at both thermostats rises, said switch forming a part of a control mechanism for said lubricant cooling means whereby a constant temperature difierential is maintained between the temperature of the room and the temperature of said source of lubricant.

2. In combination, a metal working machine having a tool carriage, a bed which is provided with a plurality of ways over which a tool carriage reciprocates, a hydraulic motor for moving said carriage, a source of oil connected to said motor and also connected to the ways of the ma? chine in order to lubricate the same, means including a refrigerating apparatus for maintaining the temperature of said oil at a constant dif ferential with respect to varying room temperatures only after said machine becomes heated, said means including thermostats which respond respectively to changes in the temperature of the oil and the temperature of the room in Which the machine is located, said thermostats being of the pneumatic type and being connected to a pair of opposed bellows, a rod connected to be moved in one direction by an increase in pressure in one of said bellows and in the other direction by an increase in pressure in the other of said bellows, and a control device responsive to the movements of said rod for determining when the refrigerating apparatus will be operated to cool said oil.

3. A metal working machine having a bed with a plurality of ways, a carriage slidable on said ways and means for reciprocating said carriage, a source of lubricant for said ways, means of circulating said lubricant over said ways, and means of maintaining the temperature of said lubricant within predetermined limits relative to the temperature of the room in which said machine is located comprising, cooling means to cool said lubricant, control means movable into a first position to make said cooling means effective and into a second position to make said cooling means ineffective, a first thermal responsive means in said lubricant responsive to increases in temperature thereof to urge said control means toward its first position, and a second thermal responsive means positioned in said room and responsive to increases in temperature thereof to llirge said control means toward said second posi- 4; A metal working machine having a bed with a plurality of ways, a carriage slidable on said ways and means for reciprocating said carriage, a

source of lubricant for said ways, means of circulating said lubricant over said ways, and means of maintaining the temperature of said lubricant within predetermined limits relative to the temperature of the room in which said machine is located comprising, cooling means to cool said lubricant, control means movable into a first po-- sition to make said cooling means efiective and into a second position to make said cooling means ineffective, yielding. means continuously urging said control means toward its second position, a

-first thermal responsive element responsive to increases in lubricant temperature to urge said control means toward its first position, and a second thermal responsive element responsive to increases in room temperature to assist said yielding means in urging said control means toward its second position,

5. A metal working machine having a bed with a plurality of ways, a carriage slidable on said ways and means for reciprocating said carriage, a source of lubricant for said ways, means of circulating said lubricant over said Ways, and means of maintaining the temperature of said lubricant within predetermined limits relative to the temperature of the room in which said machine is located'comprising, cooling means to cool said inbricant, control means including a switch movable into closed position to make said cooling means effective and into open position to make said cooling means ineffective, yielding means continuously urging said switch toward its open position, a first bellows arranged to oppose said yielding means and a second bellows arranged to assist said yielding means, a first thermal responsive element arranged to be responsive to lubricant temperature and connected to actuate said first bellows, and a second thermal responsive element arranged to be responsive to room temperature and connected to actuate said second bellows.

WILLIAM G. BALDENHOFER. 

